Hi, just wanted to say thanks for the good reviews and that I'm finding writing this much more interesting than doing my dissertation I hate SPSS (A statistics package designed to torture final year students). Anyway read and enjoy chapter 9 will follow shortly.

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Chapter 8 – Developments

Precinct

Olivia was exhausted, the strain of the case was really starting to get to her; she looked across to Elliot who looked just as bad as she felt. She'd tried going home to sleep and rest, she'd even tried the beds in the crib but for some reason she kept on seeing Amy and how she looked the last time she'd seen her and then she saw the image of Grant, his eyes glaring at her and before she could open her eyes she saw Casey and the pain so clear in the ADA's eyes. Elliot looked up at her and smiled, he was asking if she was ok without even opening his mouth, she nodded, he looked at her again.

"Elliot I'm fine, the sooner we nail this guy the better." She replied.

"It's only natural to be heavily involved in this case, I know I am. You and Amy have become pretty close."

"It's not that, well it is but it isn't." Olivia tried to explain.

"Girl talk, I'm no good at it. But I can try." Elliot reassured her as they headed off to the diner to talk.

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Olivia told him all about her nightmares and he was understanding and said the right things, he didn't suggest going to see a doctor for sleeping pills, nor did he tell her to go home, relax and try to go to sleep. Before Elliot could offer her any advice his Cell rang and it was Cragen.

"Stabler?"

"Hey, as of 10am Amy Novak will be registered as a missing person; I've managed to pull some strings to get it through faster than normal, there's been no response since she left her parents place yesterday. Her description is being circulated again and I'm assured we'll be kept up to date. I just thought you ought to know." He said.

"Thanks Cap." Elliot hung up and told Olivia, he watched her expression change and he could tell that she was on the edge of tears. "She'll be ok Liv; she'll come back in her own time." He grabbed hold of her hand and gave her a reassuring smile. "Come on, let's go to the labs and hurry them along. I'm tired of waiting for them to contact me." Elliot said standing up as Olivia's phone rang.

"Benson?" She answered automatically. "Oh?... … … Really? … … … … …You think? … … … … Elliot's with me I'll tell him, you just make sure you stand over them at the lab, make sure they get it done ASAP… … … … … No, don't tell her, you know they've listed Amy as missing, hopefully it'll make it easier for us to locate her…………Let us know as soon as … … … …Ok, bye." Olivia hung up, she was smiling somewhat.

"What gives?" Elliot asked passing her her coat.

"That was Munch, they've found something at the house, clothes and photos quite likely belonging to former victims, they're going to the labs now." Olivia smiled.

"Hopefully we'll get a match to the other girls as well as Amy, but who aren't you going to tell?" Elliot asked sceptically.

"Casey, she's got too much on her plate at the moment, no point getting her hopes up only to dash them again."

"What about your hopes?" Elliot asked.

"I'm going with my gut instinct on this one." Olivia responded, she had the feeling that Grant was highly proud of what he'd done to Amy with her being so young and innocent when it happened and would most probably have kept a souvenir, hopefully it had DNA on it that would still be traceable after over 13 years, that way they'd be able to nail him. All they needed was a miniscule amount of DNA and Amy's nightmare and the reason for Olivia's sleepless nights would be locked up behind bars.

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I pray that they get the DNA match for Amy, I mean yes, I know we've got him for the others but it'd mean so much to get him for Amy, maybe then she'll be able to walk around without worrying about him being behind her. Maybe then the squad and I will get the chance to see the real Amy Novak, I mean there have been moments when another side of her has been poking through but there's always been that at the back of her mind and I think it's been slowly eating away at her. I mean I know I have a less than perfect background but my mother wasn't 13 when she was raped, I wonder what would have happened if this bastard had gotten Amy pregnant? I doubt she would have kept it, she was only a child, I can't help but see her as a child now sometimes, like when I found her sat sorting through those case files and she was singing, and then there's the pet lip she gets when Elliot or I tell her off. Maybe she's kick starting my maternal instincts, I know Casey is protective of her but it's understandable, I know Amy's her little sister and she partly blames herself for what happened. If I were in her shoes I probably would blame myself too, I wish there was something I could do to help them. I just passed her in the hall and couldn't believe she was in the office, when I asked she said Amy would come back in her own time. The girl ran off with no shoes and no money – where the hell could she go? Sometimes I just want to throttle Casey and be done with it; she really rubs me up the wrong way sometimes. Amy however is different; it's so much easier to talk to her, sometimes I can't believe they're related. If it were up to me I'd be searching the city for Amy not going about my day job. I spoke to Cragen about it but he said the best place for me was at the office. So I'm sat at my desk waiting for the DNA lab to call. … Wait a minute, what's the matter with Cragen? He doesn't look too good?

"What's up boss?" Olivia asked leaving her thoughts up in the air.

"Erm, I just got a call, a woman matching Amy's description threw herself under a car on the subway this morning." Cragen replied and immediately the female detective felt a lump in her throat.

"Any id?" Elliot asked pulling Olivia close to him and struggling to maintain his own composure, he had a feeling the detective was close to tears.

"The body's pretty messed up but I'm going see Casey and ask her to make and id." Cragen replied his face pale.

"You can't it'll kill her." Olivia replied pushing Elliot away as a tear slid down her cheek. "I'll do it, there's always a chance it might not be her, the family are going through enough as it is. I'll make an informal id, then if it is her you can get one of the family to do it." Olivia managed trying to stop any more tears, the look she gave Cragen told him that saying no wasn't an option.

"The CCTV footage matches Amy's size and stature, I hate to say it but from what I've been told it's most probably her. If Casey shows up don't breathe a word to her." Cragen whispered to Elliot as he followed Olivia to the door.

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Please no, don't let it be her, please no. She's only 26 for crying out loud, her whole life to live for, we've got him and for what. We've got yet another long wait and it's just not fair. What if it is her? I don't know how Olivia will manage; this thing is getting to her enough as it is. Come on Amy, give us a sign you're still out there fighting, don't let the bastard win. Elliot was in his own world when Casey entered the quiet squad room.

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She didn't like how everybody looked so gloomy, she was a little wary of the expression on Elliot's face, she'd just passed Olivia and Cragen in the hall and Olivia looked like she was about to cry, that on it's own scared Casey, the strong detective looking like she did as she walked out of the building, and then there was the look that Cragen gave her. Then it hit her like a brick to the head.

"There wasn't a DNA match was there?" She asked Elliot her voice breaking as she said it. Immediately he turned his attention to the tall redhead, it hurt to have to lie to her but he'd been ordered to do so.

"Nothing yet." He replied softly.

"Then why are you so distracted? Why did Cragen give me a pity look? Why is this office so damn quiet? And why the hell did Olivia look like she was about to burst into tears when I passed her moments ago? Elliot tell me what's going on!" Casey demanded her voice breaking, he didn't have it in his heart to lie to her, he couldn't.

"Casey I think you ought to sit down." Elliot said nervously, that's all it took for Casey to break down, she was soon sobbing hysterically and broke down in Amy's chair.

"How did she?" Casey managed between sobs as Elliot knelt down in front of her, taking a deep breath he grabbed hold of her hand and looked her in the eye.

"This morning a woman matching Amy's description threw herself under a subway car." He said and Casey's sobs became louder and her whole body began to shake. "Olivia and the Captain have gone to try and make an id."

"You should have called me." Casey said angrily.

"Casey you have to think positive, it might not be her. If it is then you can go to make a formal id. I know this is hard for you Casey but try to be strong, chances are Amy's walking round the corner right now and she'll march in here with a smile on her face." Elliot said trying to calm the ADA, but he doubted there was much he could do or say to make Casey feel any better. He'd just told her there was a strong chance her little sister had killed herself, even though he'd been ordered not to do so.

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Morgue

"That was Elliot, he's told Casey, she came into the office and he didn't think he could lie to her." Cragen told Olivia who was relieved in a way that she hadn't had to tell Casey. "She's taking it badly; I can't imagine she'd take it any other way. You sure you want to do this?" He asked placing a protective hand on Olivia's shoulder.

"I have to, I want to." Olivia replied taking a breath and heading into the room.

The coroner pulled the covers off of the body, it was all messed up from the impact of being hit by the subway car, but the hair colour was unmistakably that of Amy's as Cragen noticed and he took a deep breath before forcing himself to take a look at the face at the exact moment Olivia did, after taking one look Olivia ran outside and threw up, it was just too much to look at, she began to cry again as Cragen joined her.

"We should erm call Elliot and Casey. Yeah, that's what I should do." Cragen said his voice portraying no emotion, he was worried about how Olivia had reacted, she'd seen hundreds of dbs over the years and never really shed a tear, but then she'd never looked on any of those as a younger sister before.